The Crown's Obsession

Music Recommendation: Existence by Tim Wynn

.

Raphael raised his hand which had cards spread in his fingers. The woman stared at his hands. "Please see if you can catch them as fast as I caught your knives."

The woman looked startled when the cards started to move in her direction in such fast speed that she had not expected him to throw it in such swiftness. One of the cards came to tear the clothes that she wore, while another card came to graze against her cheek, drawing blood and leaving a light sting on her cheek.

"Impressive," she said, the smile on her lips fell, and she had a serious look on her face now. Raphael threw one more card, and she caught hold of it right in front of her face between her two fingers. "You were slow this time."

"Are you sure?" smiled Raphael. For a moment, his words left the woman confused, and the next second, the card blew up in her hand like a little fire of cannonball.

"You bastard," she cursed him, and soon they ended up indulging in throwing knives and cards at each other.

The woman had not expected the cards to blast in her face, and it left a burn where part of her skin had burnt itself, leaving the skin on her face melted.

"How is that when it comes to getting to know me? I love explosives, and these are my very own creations," remarked Raphael in delight. "Please have some more," and he went on to throw the cards at her. If the cards were only going to pass through, it would have been a less hassle, but it was bursting, putting the woman at a disadvantage.

The cards that Raphael was making use of, was not normal but made out of metal. When the thrown cards moved in speed touching the demoness, upon his mind's word, the metals reacted to blast, where he exactly wanted.

In no time, the woman was left with her body melted and she fell on the ground, unable to move an inch from where she was. She uttered something incoherent as if she was speaking in the demons' language.

Raphael didn't bother to check up on her and he went back to look for Beth, but he came to realize that the growl of the werewolf had stopped. He tried to search for her, but he couldn't find her. Did she perhaps step outside the premise of the castle grounds, which was why he couldn't hear her?

But what really happened was that after Beth had turned into a werewolf, she had also turned back into her human self, where she now laid unconscious outside the castle stairs, on the grass with her tattered clothes. Madeline's spell had worked, and the moon was nowhere in sight, but it was also causing a fluctuation with what Beth's body was trying to transform into.

Beth continued to lay there while Raphael looked for her on the other side of the castle and the fight with others continued.

Inside the castle, Calhoun caught hold of Walter to punch the man over and over again. The bones cracking on Walter's face could be heard as Calhoun plummeted his fist straight at the demon's jaw, leaving half of the man's face damaged and broken, turning it disfigured.

"Do you think hitting me is going to do anything? You should perhaps consider joining with me and the others, Calhoun. Who knows, with a little bit of sacrifice, you can bring back your dead mother," said Walter, coughing blood from his mouth, and then staring at Calhoun.

"Let me think about it," replied Calhoun. He paused his hand for a second, and then said, "I guess I have no interest," and he continued to punch Walter until the demon could barely get up from the ground and he laid there with his bloody face.

When Calhoun pulled back and turned his back, ready to find Madeline, Walter tried to push himself up and spread his bat-like wings.

"I forgot about that," murmured Calhoun, and before Walter could try to get away from him by flying into the sky, Calhoun caught hold of one of the bat-like wings, and tore it from the demon's back and Walter cried out in pain. Walter's voice echoed loudly through the corridors.

Calhoun threw the wing on the ground that flapped as if it had its own life. Anger coursed through the demon's body. Calhoun caught hold of Walter's neck, pushing him against the wall, while they both struggled to get a good hold of each other. In no time, Calhoun tore even the other wing of Walter, and blood dripped down the demon's back.

Before Walter could get over from the shock of what happened to both of his wings, Calhoun had Walter on his knees, standing behind, he put both his hands on the demon's head, and Walter struggled to get the King's hands off of him.

But Calhoun was too strong for him, and he tore the demon's head from his body and threw it on the ground, and blood started to splatter.

Near the royal's room, Lucy continued to lay on the ground with her hand on her stomach as she felt the blood continue to ooze out from there. She could hear the clashing sounds coming not too far away from where she laid, but the vampiress eyesight had started to dim, and she found it difficult to breathe in the air as she felt suffocated.

On the other hand, Madeline continued creating icicles and threw it against Samuel for him to only dodge. He wasn't letting her near him, which made it difficult for her to send the damned back to Hell.

Samuel then disappeared from her sight, and he appeared to stand in front of her quickly, "I must say, you are an eyesore," said Samuel, ready to use the large metal of rod which was in his hand to strike Madeline's head. At the same time, Madeline had got the icicle to attack him from the back, piercing him through his stomach. "You bitch," he glared at her, trying to get the icicle out of his body.

Leaving the struggling demon behind, Madeline quickly made her way to where Lucy laid on the ground, soaking in her blood.

"Lucy!"

The vampiress' lips moved, and in great difficulty, she spoke, "L-lady Madeline."

"I am here. I won't let him harm you!" Madeline assured her. She didn't know what to do, and she placed her hands on Lucy's stomach where the wounds were.

"Thank you," whispered Lucy, a faint smile on her lips before her eyes slowly started to close. With the blood she had lost, there was no telling if the vampiress would survive, thought Madeline to herself. How cruel could Samuel be to hurt Lucy!

"Please stay with me!" came the rushed words from Madeline, and she tried to heal the injured girl who was on the brink of her death.

Her hands shook, and she tried to steady them while covering Lucy's wounds with her hands by whispering spells. But after a while, Lucy's body didn't move. The vampiress' eyes stared, and the light in there started to turn dark.

Madeline felt her heart stop when she caught sight of Lucy's hand that slid down to the ground which she had placed at the side of her body earlier. The vampiress' lips were parted, but not a single word came out, nor did she move her lips for the pain she felt in her body.

"L-lady Lucy?" Madeline called the vampiress, but in return, she received no response.

Noticing the red eyes that had turned blank, she uttered more spells to heal, putting her own life and soul to get Lucy back. Madeline felt her chest hurt and a bubble of cough rise in her throat because of the extent she had made use of her ability, and she raised her hand to see her blood. But even though Madeline didn't stop using her ability, Lucy didn't wake up.

The more she tried, the more pain arose in her chest, and Madeline doubted if her ability was even working.

Madeline took a shuddering breath, her eyes starting to prick as tears began to appear, and she felt one tear slide down her cheek as she realized Lucy was not breathing anymore.